Lithuanian Balciunaite is the marathon woman
Source: Agencies |
August 1, 2010, Sunday
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LITHUANIAN Zivile Balciunaite shrugged off the cloying Mediterranean heat to claim gold in the women's marathon at the European championships in Barcelona yesterday.
The unfancied 31-year-old improved on her fourth-place finish at the 2006 edition, completing the course through the perpendicular streets of the Catalan capital in a season's best time of 2:31.14.
Russia's Nailya Yulamanova was second in 2:32.15 ahead of Italian Anna Incerti in 2:32.48.
With temperatures hovering around 27 degrees Celsius and the hot sun intermittently bursting through the clouds, Balciunaite was one of a pack of 11 runners leading the 43-strong field at the 25-kilometer mark.
Wearing a white baseball cap and a green vest and black running shorts, she then pulled away from her rivals and waved happily to the crowds, signed autographs and posed for photographs after crossing the line.
"I love to run in the heat, it suits me very well," said Balciunaite. "The circuit helped a lot as well - no hills, no turns, just perfect."
Still looking remarkably youthful at the age of 50, Merlene Ottey became the oldest athlete to compete at a European championships when she ran the final leg of the 4x100 heat for adopted country Slovenia earlier.
The team came in seventh, meaning the Jamaica-born sprinter will not be appearing in today's final.
In the women's heptathlon, world champion Jessica Ennis's overnight lead of 110 points over Ukrainian Nataliya Dobrynska was trimmed to 68 after yesterday's long jump.
Briton Ennis, 24, managed a leap of 6.43 meters to extend her points tally by 985 to 5,065, while Dobrynska's jump of 6.56 gave her 1,027 points and a total of 4,997 with only the javelin and 800 meters to come.
"I've got to give it everything in the javelin and 800," Ennis told the BBC. "It's definitely going to be tight, Dobrynska's right there."
France advanced to the men's 4x100 relay final today despite Christophe Lemaitre, who won the 100 and 200 dashes, sitting out qualifying. Martian Mbandjock, who won bronze in the 100 and 200, anchored France. Germany was fastest in a time of 38.75.
Belgium topped women's 4x100 qualifying, and France was quickest in the men's 4x400.
On Friday, Lemaitre's fairytale continued when he lunged past Christian Malcolm of Britain to snatch victory in the 200 by 0.01 seconds in 20.37 and become the first Frenchman to do the European sprint double.
Russia's women enjoyed a golden fiesta with five victories, including a sweep of the 400 medals.
The unfancied 31-year-old improved on her fourth-place finish at the 2006 edition, completing the course through the perpendicular streets of the Catalan capital in a season's best time of 2:31.14.
Russia's Nailya Yulamanova was second in 2:32.15 ahead of Italian Anna Incerti in 2:32.48.
With temperatures hovering around 27 degrees Celsius and the hot sun intermittently bursting through the clouds, Balciunaite was one of a pack of 11 runners leading the 43-strong field at the 25-kilometer mark.
Wearing a white baseball cap and a green vest and black running shorts, she then pulled away from her rivals and waved happily to the crowds, signed autographs and posed for photographs after crossing the line.
"I love to run in the heat, it suits me very well," said Balciunaite. "The circuit helped a lot as well - no hills, no turns, just perfect."
Still looking remarkably youthful at the age of 50, Merlene Ottey became the oldest athlete to compete at a European championships when she ran the final leg of the 4x100 heat for adopted country Slovenia earlier.
The team came in seventh, meaning the Jamaica-born sprinter will not be appearing in today's final.
In the women's heptathlon, world champion Jessica Ennis's overnight lead of 110 points over Ukrainian Nataliya Dobrynska was trimmed to 68 after yesterday's long jump.
Briton Ennis, 24, managed a leap of 6.43 meters to extend her points tally by 985 to 5,065, while Dobrynska's jump of 6.56 gave her 1,027 points and a total of 4,997 with only the javelin and 800 meters to come.
"I've got to give it everything in the javelin and 800," Ennis told the BBC. "It's definitely going to be tight, Dobrynska's right there."
France advanced to the men's 4x100 relay final today despite Christophe Lemaitre, who won the 100 and 200 dashes, sitting out qualifying. Martian Mbandjock, who won bronze in the 100 and 200, anchored France. Germany was fastest in a time of 38.75.
Belgium topped women's 4x100 qualifying, and France was quickest in the men's 4x400.
On Friday, Lemaitre's fairytale continued when he lunged past Christian Malcolm of Britain to snatch victory in the 200 by 0.01 seconds in 20.37 and become the first Frenchman to do the European sprint double.
Russia's women enjoyed a golden fiesta with five victories, including a sweep of the 400 medals.
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